Martial Arts Magazine Australia

by Sam Sujanta

In the previous article, we discussed broadly what Tai Chi is and what Tai Chi can do for you. Now that we have a bit of a deeper understanding of the benefits Tai Chi offers,let us now look at a few essential principles that need to be applied when starting any Tai Chi program.

To gain all the benefits and understand Tai Chi in all its glory, takes time, dedication, patience and consistency with your practice. As a beginner, you may expect to achieve your goals in your very first lesson. It should be understood that the chances of this happening are unlikely and that you should not let it deter you from practicing. Tai Chi is a deep and multi-faceted art that requires practice to achieve your desired objectives. However, if you can understand and apply some of the following principles, you can expect to reach your goals sooner.

Rising to the top
This refers to your spirit. When performing Tai Chi movements, keep your head upright, firm but relaxed. Do not allow tension to come in, as this will block the flow of energy. The best way to gauge the correct technique is to look where your eye line level is. Try not to look down at your toes or higher than your head. When you rise your spirit to the top, you will attain a state of mental freshness.

Lower the chest, raise the back
A simple way to practice this principle is to think of caving in your chest and rounding your shoulders forward while keeping your back straight. Just be mindful to keep your body relaxed without any tension. Again, this will allow the energy to flow more freely throughout your body.

Loosen the waist
All your movements are driven from the waist, which is the controlling part of the torso. Keeping your waist supple will relax the upper body movements while maintaining a strong stable stance.

Differentiate
‘Apparent’ and ‘Solid’
When you place all your body weight on one leg (solid) and counter support your balance with the leg that has no body weight on it (apparent), you will have abetter understanding of how to make your movements more agile when stepping.

Sink shoulders, drop elbows
To understand this feeling, stand upright and imagine hugging an invisible beach ball against your chest. Now, if your shoulders are tense and your elbows are high, simply exhale slowly and watch how they sink. Notice how your upper body suddenly becomes more relaxed.

Use will, not strength
One way to interpret this is to let your mind be focused and concentrate on the movements to come out as naturally as possible without forcing it. Again, the aim here is to get your body to relax using the power of the mind.

Coordination between top and bottom
An easy way to think of this is to make sure that your upper body movements are coordinated with your lower body. Not just hands and feet, but also the waist, shoulders, torso. Even the eyes and breathing must be unified together so that they all start moving together and finish moving together for any given move. This is the essence of ‘Yin-Yang harmony’.

Internal and external unity
Again, we look at the concept of yin-yang theory applying to movements between the mind and the body. Essentially, if your movement is extended or ‘open’, then so should your mind be. Likewise, if your movement is drawn in, your mind should be ‘closed’ or more focused.

Continuity without break
When performing a set of combined movements of a Tai Chi routine, each and every individual move should link to each other as if they were one long continuous movement rather than many separate ones.

Seeking stillness in movement
When you slow movements down, your breathing will naturally become deep and long. The body is more relaxed and then there will be no blockages to allow the energy to flow freely throughout the body. The slower the movements, the better,almost to the point where it feels as if you are not moving at all.

Applying these principles is one of the first steps to your success in Tai Chi practice.You may also come across some styles of Tai Chi that may look different in their movements (we will discuss this in another article) but all of them should share these essential principles. One of the main purposes in the correct use of the fundamentals is to help the practitioner cultivate what is known as ‘chi’ energy,which can be considered the life force that helps regulate our well-being.

For more information contact – Perth Tai Chi Academy